Whether you approach it from the point of view of conservation, entomology, crop pollination or simply a love of honey, beekeeping is an engaging pursuit and a fascinating window on the natural world.
So what does it take to become a beekeeper?
The essentials are simple enough: some sort of hive, a hat and a veil, an [...]

Method 1: by Red
you will need:
a washing up bowl
washing soda crystals
washing up liquid
hot water
The method I use is to only work on a small part of fleece at a time, the advantage being that it’s not so daunting and you can keep the rest of the fleece ‘in the grease’, in your shed!
When you first [...]

I have kept chooks for many years, and for the past few years I have bought point of lay Rhode Island Reds from a local poultry farm to replace those that have gone to a better place. We have had some recent chookacides and we

It is amazing how quickly you learn things about animals, about their needs, their temperaments, and I think just as importantly what they can do for you. Keeping any animal requires a great deal of your time, and energy, and can involve a huge expense (ask the last person you know that went to a [...]

Having recently created an 80 foot by 80 foot organic vegetable patch I suppose I am on the slippery slide into self-sufficientishism.  The next obvious step was to produce my own eggs.  I kept a dozen chickens about 20 years ago and still had the chicken hut minus its interior fittings as it was being [...]